Wonderful Blue
by TheLateNightStoryteller
Summary: Fitz and Simmons spend a fun day at the ocean. Set before 1x17 turn turn turn.


This story takes place sometime before 1x17 Turn, turn, turn. When exactly is up to you :) Agents of Shield belongs to its wonderful creators and ABC and Marvel.

Also I realize the beginning of this is basically the scene in the Lion King right after the opening song. The Lion King belongs to Disney.

Be sure to look for the Fringe reference ;) if you want.

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"Fitz wake up!" Jemma called brightly, tapping on his door.

He groggily rolled over and hit the top of his clock so the time lit up.

"It's six in the morning," he called back, covering his head with his pillow.

"6:02 am eastern standard time," she chirped and he heard the door open. The matress bounced as she sat down beside him."We're going to miss low tide if you don't hurry, unless you want to skip breakfast."

His stomach grumbled at the thought but he didn't move. "The sun isn't even up yet," he grumbled.

She took the pillow off his face, "You promised me we wouldn"t miss it." she reminded him, sounding disapointed.

He shut his eyes tighter to block out the sudden light from the hall but he knew he wasn't going back to sleep.

"Ok, ok just give me a minute," he agreed opening one eye to see her beaming down at him. The sun might not be up yet but the grin that stretched across her face was a good substitute.

He stretched, trying to shake off his sleepiness while she rummaged through his drawers and tossed clothes at him.

"Be sure to wear something warm," she advised, and one of his sweaters landed on top of him.

"Simmons I know how to pick out my own clothes!" he protested.

"Well hurry up then!" she ordered, "I'm dressed already!" She bounced out the door, "I'm making toast," she told him from the hall. "It'll be ready in five minutes."

He sat up and went through the pile of clothes she had left him. He briefly considered putting them back and choosing his own but decided it would be quicker to just get dressed. Besides she'd selected his favourite sweater.

The two scientists had a rare day of vacation and, as luck would have it, the Bus had landed near the ocean. After a short walk they spent the chilly morning darting between pools left behind by the tide. As the sun rose and the tide came back in it began to warm up, however he was glad for his sweater which had shielded him from the morning cold.

Jemma was having an amazing time chattering to him about the life that teemed in the pools, which were appropriately named tidal pools. Fitz was enjoying himself too. He loved how she described the world in around them. It was interesting and he was learning a lot of new things and it was nice to spend time just the two of them with no goal but to have fun.

The bus wasn't due to take off until the afternoon and he let her convince him to stay and go swimming in the ocean once it became warmer. There was a store on the beach where they could buy swimsuits and snacks. They chatted happily, munched on candy and watched the tide come in as the sun heated the sand and the air.

"Fitz you should come see this!" Jemma exclaimed, her head popping out of the water with a small splash. Her eyes were covered by blue rimmed goggles. "I found a scallop!"

Fitz, who was sitting happily on his stomach atop the orange tube he'd rented, shook his head.

"Oh c'mon," she pressed, "I bought you goggles didn't I?"

"I told you I wouldn't need them." he pointed out.

The goggles sat beside him along with the bottle of sunscreen he'd been using and a bag of M&Ms. Jemma swam over to him and took a blue one.

"You know you are more likely to be killed by a vending machine than a shark," she informed him standing in front of him in water that almost reached her neck.

"I'm not scared, I'm just more comfortable here," he replied. He'd just managed to warm up from the cold morning and it had been bad enough having the freezing water on his legs to push out the tube.

"It isn't so bad once you get use to it," she asserted. "You must be warm in the sun. Come in before you turn into a baked potato!"

"I'm covered," he said, referring to the brightly coloured towel protecting his back.

She made a face and dove back down. He closed his eyes, enjoying the sunlight and the feel of the waves rocking him up and down.

"You should see the isopods down here!" she gasped after a particularly long dive.

"Simmons..."

"I know," she rolled her eyes, "You'd rather turn into a boiled lobster than come see the wonders of the ocean."

"Exactly," he nodded. "Why don't you just tell me what you"re seeing?"

"It's not the same," she argued.

"You're good with words," he answered.

She smiled at him. "Fine." She began painting a picture of the world beneath and he listened contently. He didn't need to go into the water, she could see the ocean for him.

After a few minutes she dove down again to explore beneath the tube. Fitz squirmed beneath his towel and shoved it off his back. It _was_ starting to get a little warm...

"Look at ths!" she bubbled when she came back up. A peach coloured shell was placed in front of him before she dove back down.

He considered it for a moment before closing his eyes again to wait for her to resurface. He was dozing off when something began tapping on the tube. He reopened his eyes, expecting to see Jemma but found himself face to face with a large crab who inhabited the shell.

Letting out a yelp, he rolled away from it and toppled off the tube with a splash. It was ice cold and the salty water got up his nose and into his mouth. Fortunately the water was shallow enough to stand and he planted his feet onto the ground as he gripped the tube, coughing and spitting out water.

"Oh excellent! You're going to join me," Jemma cheered when she returned to the tube to find him soaked and shivering and up to his neck in ocean water. "Be sure to put on your goggles," she instructed reaching into the tube to fetch them. "Where did the hermit crab go?"

Fitz realized he must have accidentally knocked it back into the water.

"He fell in," he told her, deciding to leave out that the tiny creature had made him jump out of his skin.

"Oh, well that's probably for the best then," she shrugged placing the goggles onto his face, "he belongs in the ocean anyway. Come see the scallop!"

She was so delighted about him joining her that he couldn't bring himself to refuse. Anyway, he was already soaked and freezing.

They dove down together and she pointed out a small, shelled creature. To his surprise it was moving around, opening and closing it's shell to propel itself through the blue ocean water.

She nudged him and the wonderfully joyous expression on her face forced a wide smile onto his. The ocean didn't seem so cold anymore. It was fortunate, he decided, that the crab had frightened him off the tube and into this blue weightless world that was warmed by his friend's excitement.

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**Fun Background**

**Thank you so much to everyone who liked and reviewed my other stories. It is greatly appreciated. You guys are wonderful blues!**

The Fringe reference in this story is 6:02 am eastern standard time (EST) this is the name of the episode 3x20. The title refers to the time when the alternate universe Walter turns on the doomsday machine. It is also Olivia Dunham's favourite time of day. (Sunrise)

This story was inspired by Simmons respect for the ocean (and life) even when they thought it was going to kill them. That whole sequence with them in the box was amazing.

Scallops are shelled animals related to snails, clams and octopus (they are mollusks). Unlike most bivalves (clams and oysters) they are active swimmers. They also have eyes on the edges of their mantles.

Some kinds of hermit crabs cannot live underwater but the one in the story is a marine hermit crab and they can.


End file.
